An Ontario pickup truck driver who avoided Canadian authorities for more than nine months after allegedly causing a crash that killed a Manitoba mother and her eight-year-old daughter when he drove through a stop sign last year has been granted bail.
Navjeet Singh, 26, was released on conditions including surrendering his passport and driver’s license, not occupying the driver’s seat of a vehicle, living at a specified address in Ontario and reporting weekly to police in Manitoba, following a contested bail hearing before Provincial Court Judge Michael Clark on Aug. 28.
Singh was arrested a week earlier at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport after arriving in Canada on an Ethiopian Airlines flight, police said at the time.
He had been wanted on charges including dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death after the Nov. 15, 2024 crash that killed Sara Unger, 35, and her daughter, Alexa, near the town of Altona, about 90 kilometers southwest of Winnipeg.
Crown attorney Michael Himmelman said during Singh’s bail hearing, investigators believe he was driving at least 91 km/h on a section of road with a 100 km/h speed limit when he flew through the stop sign that night, crashing into the passenger side of Unger’s SUV.
Court heard road conditions that night were normal, and no environmental concerns such as obstructions were noted, according to a bail hearing record reviewed by CBC.
Police tried to interview Singh at the hospital after the accident, but were told he was in shock. Singh was told to contact investigators when he was released. Officers later contacted him, but he never showed up for an interview as promised.
A witness to the crash described the impact of the collision as an “explosion,” Himmelman said. The SUV was “essentially hit in the football a distance of more than 53 meters,” he said, and the force of the impact was so aggressive “that the front of the SUV was almost removed” and all of its windows were broken.
The prosecutor also noted that the black box in Singh’s semi was turned off at the time of the accident, and Singh allegedly falsified his driving record, leading an investigator to conclude that Singh did not take the eight consecutive hours of rest before getting on the road before the accident.
“This could point toward driver fatigue, which could be a contributing factor to the crash,” Himmelman said.
“The fact that the data in the defendant’s vehicle was closed, I submit, is incredibly concerning. There is also the manipulation and falsification of his driving records to consider, in terms of whether Mr. Singh can be taken at his word.”
RCMP are still searching for a missing Ontario truck driver connected to a deadly collision, a mother and her eight-year-old daughter were killed in the crash. We’re learning more about Navjeet Singh’s disappearance after police issued a Canada-wide arrest warrant.
While Himmelman said Singh has no criminal record, the prosecutor argued that he poses a significant flight risk.
He said Singh also admitted that he knew about the arrest warrant when he left Canada, which “leads to the inescapable conclusion that the accused knowingly evaded police.”
‘He returned to fight the charges’
Responding to concerns that his client is a flight risk, Singh’s Ontario-based lawyer, Abhay Gautam, said Singh was fully aware that he would be arrested when he returned to Canada and did so anyway.
“He came back with that knowledge and came back to fight the charges,” Gautam told the court. “It’s unfortunate that a crash occurred and two lives were lost. And I’m at a loss for words, you know. One can only imagine what the family must be going through.”
The court heard Singh arrived in Canada from India in 2020 as an international student. He obtained a work permit in 2022 and has been working as a truck driver since then, Gautam said.
The lawyer said Singh was “shocked and stressed” after the accident, adding that when the driver told his parents what happened: “His mother’s health took a turn and she fell ill. And he said that he had left the country and then supported his parents.”
Gautam also said Singh informed him that his family depends on his income to cover expenses, including the medications his mother takes.
Judge Clark said that while the accident was “horrible” and the charges against Singh have the potential for a long term in prison if convicted, courts should not deny reasonable bail without just cause.
Singh’s bail conditions, which also include not contacting family members of victims or witnesses in the case, remaining under a curfew and having a relative promise to pay $7,500 if he breaks any of those rules, should help address any concerns surrounding his release.
“I believe the public would maintain confidence in the administration of justice by releasing Mr. Singh under appropriate conditions,” Clark said. “And I will.”
Singh’s case is scheduled to appear in court again in December.
